MetroFanatic: Ryan, so you grew up a fan of this team?
Ryan Meara: Yeah, always first a fan of the MetroStars, now a Red Bulls fan.

MF: Well, you have to be a fan now!
RM: (laughs) Yeah, I went to a bunch of games when I was younger, to be playing for the team now is really something.

MF: Tony Meola, Mike Ammann, Tim Howard, Jonny Walker... now you.
RM: It's an honor to play. As you said, some great great keepers came through here. Hopefully, I'm the next.

MF: You were drafted in the second round, there was all this talk about signing the veteran, yet you are the guy.
RM: To tell the truth, coming into preseason, my goal was just to make a good impression on the staff and the guys on the field. I just really work as hard as I could and get better every day. Obviously, any player on the team wants to be in the starting 11. But for me, to be a young guy, a rookie, I was ready to come in and be the backup, whatever my role on the team was, I was happy. But I'm the starter now, and it's an honor, and I'm really enjoying it.

MF: Yet they're still talking about possibly signing a European goalie...
RM: It's something I don't think about at all. I don't read any of that stuff. I try to focus on what I'm doing. If you read any of that stuff, you will go crazy.

MF: Jeremy has played overseas, but he's still young. Do you think you miss on having a mentor like many other young keepers in the league?
RM: Me and Jeremy compete against each other, but we always try to help each other out. We're the only two goalies on the team, we gotta stick together.